LABOUR’S shadow home secretary Diane Abbott has admitted that in the event of there being a second Brexit referendum Britain would still vote to leave the European Union.

The Labour frontbencher warned that those wanting a second Brexit vote should “be careful what they wish for” as she admitted “Leave would win again”. Ms Abbott was asked by BBC Any Questions? host Jonathan Dimbleby how she would vote in the event of a second Brexit referendum. In response, she said: “On the question of a second referendum, I wouldn’t reject it out of hand but people, I keep saying this, people should be careful what they wish for.

“My suspicion is that if we had a second referendum tomorrow, Leave would win again.

“And there would also be a lot of very annoyed Leave voters. So, I don’t think it is a kind of silver bullet.”

The Labour frontbencher also said, in the event of a second Brexit vote, she would still choose to stay in theEuropean Union.

Ms Abbott said: “I voted to Remain in the last referendum even though I have an immaculate record on voting against further measures of EU integration. And I would vote to Remain in a second referendum.”

The veteran Labour MP also admitted she would not “reject” the idea of extending Article 50 – insisting “it is an option” that could be taken should the Prime Minister’s deal get rejected next week.

The comments come as former party deputy leader Roy Hattersley claims the "vast majority" of Labour members want the party to campaign for a new Brexit referendum if hopes of an early general election are extinguished.

Lord Hattersley, who was a minister in the Wilson and Callaghan governments, will declare his support for the People's Vote campaign in a speech in Sheffield on Saturday.

The former deputy Labour Party leader is expected to urge party leader Jeremy Corbyn to "put out of his mind all the outdated nonsense about a socialist economy being impossible in Europe".

The 86-year-old has previously said leaving the EU will be a "disaster".

Parliament is set to vote on the draft Brexit divorce deal on January 15 – nearly a month after Prime Minister Theresa May first pulled it to avoid a defeat in the Commons.

The Prime Minister's efforts to rally support for her deal appear to have partially succeeded after two Conservative MPs announced they would back the deal after previously voicing concern about it.

George Freeman and Trudy Harrison announced on Thursday they would vote in favour of Mrs Mays deal.

Mr Freeman, who used to chair the Prime Minister’s policy board, said he would back Mrs May “with a heavy heart”.